NES Works Gaiden #22: Mappy / Urban Champion / Clu Clu Land / Excitebike

1984 comes to an end for the Famicom with a trio of releases that American fans will recognize from the Black Box launch era of the NES. Arriving singly in 1984 rather than en masse a year or two later amidst dozens of other games with a similar visual vibe, benighted NES releases Urban Champion and Clu Clu Land stand up a bit better here. (Excitebike, of course, rules no matter what the context.) Also this episode, Namco's Mappy brings the company's most uninspired mascot of the early '80s to Famicom in another respectable home adaptation that flatters the Famicom hardware when held up against contemporary conversions. And that's it for Nintendo and Sega's '84 offerings! When NES Works Gaiden resumes later this year, we'll be in the heady days of 1985. Video Works is a patron-funded project. For early video access, exclusive podcasts and mini-zines, and more, please support my work at patreon.com/gamespite — thank you!